PHILADELPHIA — Imagine establishing yourself in Hawaii, then voluntarily transferring full-time to Alaska.
A stretch? Of course. But tell that to Chris Young, who endured yet another night of miserable conditions Tuesday. In a steady downpour and with a first-pitch temperature of 46 degrees at Citizens Bank Park, Young’s Mets pounded the Phillies, 6-1, with the center fielder contributing an RBI double, a leadoff walk and two runs.
Young, his first Mets season sidetracked by a right quadriceps injury, has played in 12 games, and here’s the geographical breakdown: Eleven at Citi Field and one in Philadelphia, with rain wiping out Wednesday night’s series finale at the Phillies. For a guy who spent his first seven years in Arizona and then last season in Oakland, with the weather conditions we have been enduring? That’s a pretty dramatic adjustment.
“I’m learning the tricks,” he said late Tuesday night. “Learning about oiling your body up to stay warm. [Using] Vaseline, little tricks that you don’t know in Arizona, for sure. Just trying to keep our hands warm. If your hands aren’t warm, it definitely affects everything.
“I’m happy to be here. No regrets.”
Young, signed last November to a one-year, $7.25 million contract by general manager Sandy Alderson, hardly has vindicated his new general manager, and Baltimore outfielder Nelson Cruz — who signed with the Orioles for one year and $8 million — has excelled offensively with Baltimore, albeit with nearly half of his appearances at designated hitter.
Nevertheless, the 30-year-old Young has provided hope in his small sample that he can help the Mets stay relevant. Entering Thursday night’s game against the Rockies, he has a .205 average, .262 on-base percentage and a .410 slugging percentage in 42 plate appearances, which is of course pretty terrible. So where does one derive the hope? From his .400/.400/.800 slash line in 10 plate appearances with runners in scoring position. And from the way he looks at the plate, combined with the meteorological likelihood of the conditions eventually improving for hitters.
“He’s swinging the bat really well,” Daniel Murphy, who contributed three hits Tuesday night, said of Young. “He’s having really good at-bats. He’s centering the ball, not trying to do too much.”
That’s precisely the approach on which Young worked this past offseason with Hall of Fame hitter Rod Carew as well as his Houston-based friend James Cooper. When Young came to bat with Murphy on first base and one out in the top of the fifth, the Mets held an unsafe 3-1 lead over the Phillies, and Young quickly fell behind Philadelphia starter Cole Hamels, 0-and-2. Young battled his way back to a full count, with Murphy stealing second on the 2-and-2 pitch, and then Young slammed an outside fastball into right-center field for a double, scoring Murphy and setting in motion what turned to be a game-changing, three-run frame.
“I felt like I got away from [his new approach] a little bit when I first came back with the team,” Young said. “I feel like I got away from that approach a little bit, maybe trying to do a little too much. In the last couple of games, I feel like I’ve been close to getting back to that point, staying in the middle of the field, going the other way. [The double] is definitely my first base hit the other way this season. And that’s where I want to be.”
Asked whether he enjoys clutch situations, Young responded, “I think I’ve always been like that. But the main goal of this season is not to come through in clutch situations. It’s to be more consistent throughout the entire season.
“I’m only 40 or so at-bats into the season. I’m just trying to keep everything in perspective, stick with the approach that I’m having and trust that it will all show up.I had a couple of close calls back at home on a couple of balls I drove. … Things will warm up. The ball will start jumping. I’m just trying to stay confident and positive.”
The new kid in town, from out West, expressed happiness with his decision.
“Coming to New York from the get-go, I knew what I was walking into. Even the weather,” he said. “I know what I signed up for, and I’m loving every bit of it.”
Now it’s on him to make the Mets just as happy. They can at least see reasons for optimism.